This is Set 15 of 60 in the smartvidya question bank on Teaching Aptitude (UGC NET Paper 1, Unit I). Part II: Learner characteristics. This set covers Sociocultural theory, modes of representation, memory and metacognition.
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Set 15: Vygotsky, Bruner and Information Processing
1. The Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) was proposed by
(a) Erik Erikson
(b) Jean Piaget
(c) Lev Vygotsky
(d) Jerome Bruner
Ans. (c) Lev Vygotsky — Explanation: Vygotsky described ZPD as the gap between what a learner can do alone and what he can do with guidance. [Ref: Vygotsky, ZPD]
2. ZPD refers to the difference between
(a) what a learner can do independently and what he can do with help from a more knowledgeable person
(b) marks in two tests
(c) chronological age and mental age
(d) the abilities of two different learners
Ans. (a) what a learner can do independently and what he can do with help from a more knowledgeable person — Explanation: Learning is most effective in this zone, where tasks are challenging but achievable with support. [Ref: Vygotsky, ZPD]
3. The temporary support given to a learner that is gradually withdrawn as competence grows is called
(a) chaining
(b) modelling
(c) scaffolding
(d) shaping
Ans. (c) scaffolding — Explanation: The term scaffolding was introduced by Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976) and fits closely with Vygotsky's ZPD. [Ref: Wood, Bruner and Ross (1976)]
4. According to Vygotsky, the main driver of cognitive development is
(a) reinforcement alone
(b) social interaction and culture
(c) unconscious conflicts
(d) biological maturation alone
Ans. (b) social interaction and culture — Explanation: Vygotsky's sociocultural theory holds that higher mental functions originate in social interaction. [Ref: Vygotsky, sociocultural theory]
5. In Vygotsky's theory, "private speech" refers to
(a) speech disorders
(b) confidential talk between teacher and student
(c) secret codes among peers
(d) children talking to themselves to guide their thinking and actions
Ans. (d) children talking to themselves to guide their thinking and actions — Explanation: Vygotsky saw private speech as a tool of self-regulation that later becomes inner speech. [Ref: Vygotsky, private speech]
6. The "More Knowledgeable Other" (MKO) in Vygotsky's theory may be
(a) only a textbook
(b) a teacher, a parent, a peer or even a computer program
(c) only the teacher
(d) only an adult relative
Ans. (b) a teacher, a parent, a peer or even a computer program — Explanation: Anyone who has better understanding of a task than the learner can act as the MKO. [Ref: Vygotsky, MKO]
7. Which of the following books is by Lev Vygotsky?
(a) Democracy and Education
(b) Emile
(c) Thought and Language
(d) The Process of Education
Ans. (c) Thought and Language — Explanation: "Thought and Language" (1934, English 1962) and "Mind in Society" (1978) present his key ideas. [Ref: Vygotsky]
8. Jerome Bruner proposed three modes of representation. They are
(a) concrete, abstract and formal
(b) visual, auditory and kinaesthetic
(c) sensory, motor and verbal
(d) enactive, iconic and symbolic
Ans. (d) enactive, iconic and symbolic — Explanation: Knowledge is represented through action (enactive), images (iconic) and symbols such as language (symbolic). [Ref: Bruner, modes of representation]
9. Learning through pictures and images is Bruner's
(a) enactive mode
(b) reflective mode
(c) symbolic mode
(d) iconic mode
Ans. (d) iconic mode — Explanation: The iconic mode uses visual images to represent knowledge. [Ref: Bruner, modes of representation]
10. The idea of a "spiral curriculum", in which topics are revisited at increasing levels of complexity, was given by
(a) Jerome Bruner
(b) Edward Thorndike
(c) B.F. Skinner
(d) Maria Montessori
Ans. (a) Jerome Bruner — Explanation: Bruner proposed the spiral curriculum in "The Process of Education" (1960). [Ref: Bruner (1960)]
11. "Any subject can be taught effectively in some intellectually honest form to any child at any stage of development." This was stated by
(a) Jean Piaget
(b) Jerome Bruner
(c) John Dewey
(d) David Ausubel
Ans. (b) Jerome Bruner — Explanation: This famous hypothesis appears in Bruner's "The Process of Education" (1960). [Ref: Bruner (1960)]
12. Bruner is closely associated with
(a) programmed instruction
(b) the law of effect
(c) discovery learning
(d) classical conditioning
Ans. (c) discovery learning — Explanation: Bruner advocated discovery learning, in which learners find out principles for themselves. [Ref: Bruner, discovery learning]
13. In the information processing model, information first enters the
(a) working memory directly
(b) long-term memory
(c) sensory memory
(d) procedural memory
Ans. (c) sensory memory — Explanation: The Atkinson–Shiffrin model proposes sensory memory, short-term memory and long-term memory. [Ref: Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968)]
14. The capacity of short-term memory, according to George Miller, is about
(a) seven plus or minus two items
(b) twenty items
(c) two items
(d) unlimited
Ans. (a) seven plus or minus two items — Explanation: Miller's 1956 paper "The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two" described this limit. [Ref: Miller (1956)]
15. Grouping digits of a phone number into groups to remember them better is called
(a) chunking
(b) interference
(c) decay
(d) rehearsal only
Ans. (a) chunking — Explanation: Chunking organises items into meaningful units, increasing what short-term memory can hold. [Ref: Memory strategies]
16. Metacognition means
(a) thinking about one's own thinking and learning
(b) thinking in a foreign language
(c) memorising quickly
(d) thinking about others' emotions
Ans. (a) thinking about one's own thinking and learning — Explanation: Metacognition, a term associated with John Flavell, involves awareness and regulation of one's own cognition. [Ref: Flavell (1976)]
17. A student checks whether she has understood a paragraph and re-reads difficult parts. She is using
(a) rote learning
(b) proactive inhibition
(c) classical conditioning
(d) metacognitive strategies
Ans. (d) metacognitive strategies — Explanation: Monitoring comprehension and adjusting strategies are metacognitive skills. [Ref: Metacognition]
18. Cognitive load theory, which suggests that instruction should not overload working memory, was developed by
(a) Lev Vygotsky
(b) Carl Rogers
(c) Albert Bandura
(d) John Sweller
Ans. (d) John Sweller — Explanation: John Sweller's cognitive load theory guides the design of instruction to fit limited working memory. [Ref: Sweller, cognitive load theory]
19. The forgetting curve was first studied experimentally by
(a) Ivan Pavlov
(b) Hermann Ebbinghaus
(c) Wolfgang Kohler
(d) Kurt Lewin
Ans. (b) Hermann Ebbinghaus — Explanation: Ebbinghaus used nonsense syllables to show that forgetting is rapid at first and then slows. [Ref: Ebbinghaus (1885)]
20. Ebbinghaus used which material in his memory experiments?
(a) Musical notes
(b) Nonsense syllables
(c) Pictures
(d) Poems
Ans. (b) Nonsense syllables — Explanation: Nonsense syllables avoided the effect of prior meaning on memory. [Ref: Ebbinghaus (1885)]
21. Learning spread over several sessions is generally more effective than learning crammed into one session. This is called
(a) massed practice
(b) rote practice
(c) whole learning
(d) distributed or spaced practice
Ans. (d) distributed or spaced practice — Explanation: Spaced practice leads to better long-term retention than massed practice. [Ref: Spacing effect]
22. When new learning interferes with the recall of old learning, it is called
(a) positive transfer
(b) retroactive inhibition
(c) consolidation
(d) proactive inhibition
Ans. (b) retroactive inhibition — Explanation: In retroactive inhibition, later learning disrupts memory for earlier material. [Ref: Interference theory]
23. When old learning interferes with recall of new learning, it is called
(a) retroactive inhibition
(b) reminiscence
(c) proactive inhibition
(d) chunking
Ans. (c) proactive inhibition — Explanation: In proactive inhibition, previously learnt material hinders memory of new material. [Ref: Interference theory]
24. According to David Ausubel, the most important single factor influencing learning is
(a) what the learner already knows
(b) the size of the class
(c) the teacher's salary
(d) the number of examinations
Ans. (a) what the learner already knows — Explanation: Ausubel stressed that new learning should be anchored to the learner's existing cognitive structure. [Ref: Ausubel (1968)]
25. Vygotsky's theory implies that teachers should
(a) avoid peer interaction
(b) leave learners entirely alone
(c) provide guided support and collaborative tasks within learners' ZPD
(d) teach only tasks learners can already do
Ans. (c) provide guided support and collaborative tasks within learners' ZPD — Explanation: Collaborative learning and scaffolding help learners reach higher levels of performance. [Ref: Vygotsky, educational implications]
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